African mining changes the tune, but will actions follow?
Author: Ed O’Keefe, Director at Synergy Global Consulting in Financial Times , Published on: 12 February 2013
… [A]t the annual Africa Mining Indaba in Cape Town…[t]his year…the debate was as much about people and politics as it was about mining. The agenda has clearly changed. At previous Indabas…[d]iscussions on the social outcomes of mining, the resource curse and sustainability were the side show. But this has been a tumultuous year for the mining industry in Africa…The events at Marikana, where nearly 50 people died in violent clashes between striking miners and police, tragically epitomised this trend and have proved to be a watershed event…there is a consensus that the current relationship between mining and society is failing to deliver expected development benefits and that a new, fairer model is needed…Talk of numbers of jobs has developed into discussions about fair wages and retrenchment and transferable skills; from transparency of revenue payments to transparency of contracts and revenue management; from community projects to billion dollar investments in anchor projects leveraging regional development; from glossy sustainability reports to listening and dialogue. [refers to Anglo American, AngloGold Ashanti, Ivanhoe, Vale]
Related companies: Anglo American AngloGold Ashanti Turquoise Hill Resources Vale